MY NEW BOOK : "KASHMIR : LORE, LIES AND LAMENT" AVAILABLE ON AMAZON WORLDWIDE

                                                                               

KASHMIR: LORE, LIES AND LAMENT

by Avtar Mota

( 22 EVOCATIVE, RESEARCH-BASED AND ENGROSSING ESSAYS ON KASHMIR WITH PHOTOGRAPHS )

Published in October 2026

Available on Amazon worldwide...

(1) USA

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HNJWB4N8

(2) UK

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0HNJWB4N8

(3) Canada

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(4) Australia.

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Amazon introduces the book as follows:-

(5) France.

https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0HNJWB4N8

This is how Amazon introduces the book: 'KASHMIR: LORE, LIES AND LAMENT'

"What does it mean to inherit a civilisation, and what happens when its wisdom is forgotten and its cultural treasures neglected, and its people torn away from their ancestral homeland? In Kashmir: Lore, Lies and Lament, Avtar Mota explores these compelling questions through a remarkable collection of essays that penetrate the many layers of Kashmir’s historical memory, philosophical achievement, literary genius, social diversity and human suffering. Moving beyond the familiar confines of political narratives, the author presents Kashmir as a civilisation of extraordinary intellectual depth, spiritual inquiry and cultural richness, while confronting the distortions, omissions and losses that have shaped its modern experience. The book’s title captures its essential spirit: lore represents the accumulated wisdom and inherited memories of generations; lies challenge the distortions and convenient interpretations through which history is sometimes presented; and lament expresses the grief of displacement, cultural neglect and the disappearance of a cherished world. Together, these themes transform the volume into an engaging exploration of what Kashmir has inherited, what it risks forgetting and what must be preserved for posterity.

At the heart of this collection are essays on two towering figures of Kashmir’s intellectual heritage, Lal Ded and Abhinavagupta. Lal Ded emerges not merely as a celebrated mystic poet but as a profound spiritual thinker whose utterances must be understood in the philosophical context of Trika Shaivism and in relation to the wider questioning of religious formalism associated with the Bhakti tradition. Abhinavagupta’s non-dual vision invites readers to contemplate the relationship between the perceiver, perception and the universe, opening a window into the remarkable metaphysical sophistication of Kashmir’s philosophical traditions. The book also explores Buddhism in Kashmir, Tilakacharya, the Mahabharata’s ties to the region, and the historical connections along the Kashmir-Taxila axis. Its engagement with Samad Mir and his Akanandun celebrates the vitality of Kashmiri poetry and its intimate relationship with collective memory. Equally fascinating is the account of Kashmir's Parsis, including families associated with Srinagar’s Bund area, whose lives illuminate a distinctive strand of the valley’s social history. The anecdotes scattered through these explorations are among the book’s special attractions. Often humorous, ironic and brutally truthful, they capture the contradictions, pretensions and everyday absurdities of human behaviour, preserving a social world that formal histories rarely record with comparable immediacy.

The book’s emotional force becomes particularly evident in its examination of the 1990 displacement of Kashmiri Pandits and the continuing consequences of their separation from ancestral homes, family histories and familiar cultural landscapes. The loss of family photographs, the weakening of inherited connections and the pain of dispossession reveal how exile destroys not only material security but also the intimate foundations of memory and belonging. Mota also turns a critical eye towards the Shri Pratap Singh Museum in Srinagar, questioning the inadequacy of interpretative labelling and the failure to communicate the full historical and artistic significance of Kashmir’s priceless heritage. Combining philosophical reflection, literary appreciation, historical inquiry, cultural criticism, sharp humour and poignant recollection, Kashmir: Lore, Lies and Lament offers a multifaceted portrait of a region whose story cannot be reduced to conflict or political slogans. It is a valuable read for lovers of Kashmir, students of Indian philosophy, readers of Kashmiri literature, researchers of cultural history and members of the diaspora seeking a deeper connection with their inheritance."

( Avtar Mota )

CHINAR SHADE by Autarmota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 India License.
Based on a work at http://autarmota.blogspot.com\.